On Friday night when the boys’ basketball regional quarterfinals were held, three of District 5-1A’s teams were still in the running: Spur, Jayton and Paducah. Even though Spur ultimately lost to Paducah 76 to 33 at Lubbock Christian High School, the fact that all three seeds in their district were still playing three games into the playoffs says a lot about how tough the basketball district is.
Paducah (19–1) is ranked number one in 1A in the state on the MaxPreps poll this week. They faced Nazareth (14–8) ranked number nine Monday night in Frenship.
Paducah defeated Nazareth 47 to 42 Monday night in Wolfforth to win the regional semifinals title.
The last time Paducah went to the state tournament was 1988. The Dragons actually had a two-peat in 1987 and 1988, winning the state title both years. The previous year’s winner: the Nazareth Swifts.
Nazareth has a storied basketball tradition. Most of the recognition goes to the Nazareth Swiftettes, who are trying to win their 25th state title this year, but the boys’ teams, the Swifts, are no stranger to state titles as well having won six of their own. The Dragons didn't win the state title again until 2011.
Paducah will face whoever won the Tuesday night playoff game between Jayton and Texline in Canyon.
The Jayton boys’ basketball team has never won a state championship, according to UIL archives which go back to 1921. Two years ago the Jaybirds, with the team of Tye Scogin and Aaron Hernadez, were the state runners-up to Slidell.
Last year they made it to the “Final Four” but lost to Slidell again, in their first game at the state tournament. Then UIL shut down the tournament due to Covid-19.
Tuesday night in Canyon Jayton takes another step toward the “Final Four” by taking on the Texline Tornadoes (22–4).
Texline, located on the Tex as-New Mexico border in the uppermost northwest reaches of the state, has won a couple of state tournaments—the most recentof which was five years ago—and Jayton must get by the Tornadoes to get to their “threepeat” ticket to the “Final Four.”
The Texas Spur goes to press Tuesday afternoons, but we’ll be watching the Jayton game and posting on Facebook the scores and outcomes.
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